Scarfies: The Movie, And The Reality

Scarfies, Dunedin’s first full feature film, opens on Thursday, 22 July. A flat of Otago students, enjoying the squalor of the Dunedin student life-style, stumble upon a plantation of marijuana and consequently decide to live off the profits. Set in the ‘80s, things have got worse for students since.

Though the financial pressure of user-pays education has certainly been the deciding factor for some students to enter the drug and sex industries, most students do not resort to drug dealing to survive. However they must do something perhaps worse; get into serious debt.

Student debt can be as bad for people’s future as a drug conviction: For example, a drug conviction could cost a few hundred dollars; a student loan will end up costing much more. While a drug conviction will affect employment some graduates have been refused mortgages and loans to start a business because of their student loans.

Ability to emigrate can be affected by a drug conviction. Similarly student loans bind you to the country.

“While OUSA is not advocating drug dealing I do want to make clear that student debt will have a serious impact on the lives of many graduates, as well as society at large” said OUSA President, Steve Day.

Members of OUSA executive and staff competed in today’s Scarfies promotion. The ‘inaugural scarfie sofa race’ in the Octagon. Sadly the OUSA team failed to win. First prize went to the OUSA Rowing Club, who also won last week’s Australasian Universities’ Regatta. The Director and cast of Scarfies will be holding a forum at 12.00 Union Hall this Thursday. Otago students are holding a protest against student debt on Wednesday 28th July.

ENDS

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